Friends
by the girl you wouldn't expect
Summary: This is a story focusing on Hiro and his friends from my other story (Brothers 101). For now it's a one-shot, but if enough people want me to continue it, I will. Mainly about Hiro finally getting friends his own age. Also will explain why he didn't have many friends his own age before. Read it. Maybe you'll like it? :)
1. Chapter 1

Friends

Chapter 1

Normal POV

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Hiro asked impatiently. Tadashi gave his brother a look. "Hiro, it literally _just _turned 12:00. Give it some time." Tadashi reasoned. Hiro was having none of it. "Too bad so sad. It's my birthday and I want my gift!" Hiro demanded flatly. Tadashi rolled his eyes. "Glad to see that you know what's important Hiro." He said sarcastically. Hiro merely gave him his signature tooth gapped smile.

"Yeah, well c'mon! I've been waiting forever to know what you got me." Hiro urged. Tadashi sighed and gave in, handing Hiro a microscopic gift bag. Okay, that was an exaggeration, but Hiro had expected Tadashi to go all out, not give him some dinky tiny gift bag.

Still, the newly dubbed sixteen year old gave the bag a chance and reached in for its contents. Hiro retrieved his hand to see that it now held a set of keys. "Wow Tadashi! You did NOT pull an Aunt Cass did you?!" Hiro asked in alarm, referring to the time Aunt Cass had gotten Tadashi a moped for his birthday. Tadashi chuckled. "Eh, sort of." He replied with a grin.

"Well, it can't be a car. Did you seriously get me a moped?!" He asked, not believing it. "Nope. I didn't get you a moped." Tadashi said with a knowing smile. Hiro was confused. "I don't get it." He said.

Tadashi walked to their closet to grab something while Hiro eyed the keys more closely. "Hey Tadashi, these keys are kinda funky looking. What the heck do they even go to?" Hiro asked.

"You'll see." Tadashi grunted, looking over piles of clothes for the gift he had buried for Hiro. Finally finding it, Tadashi revealed it to Hiro with a smug smile.

Hiro stared at the gift wide eyed. "No. flipping. Way. You got me a HOVER BOARD?!" he yelled in excitement.

"BOYS! IT IS MIDNIGHT. GO TO BED!" they heard aunt Cass yell.

Tadashi raised his eyebrows at Hiro who chuckled sheepishly.

"And it's not exactly a hover board. It's a modified skateboard. Tinkered it together myself." He said proudly. Hiro was in absolute awe. "This is beyond sick Tadashi. I severely doubt anything will top this." Hiro exclaimed, marveling at the sight of his gift. Tadashi looked pleased.

"Well, something might." He said secretively. Hiro's ears perked up. "What? What are you hiding?" Hiro asked with wonder filled eyes. Tadashi locked his lips and threw away the key. Hiro rolled his eyes. "Tadashi I'm not four years old. Just tell me!" Hiro said.

"Can't. It would totally ruin the surprise." Tadashi said, jumping into his bed. Hiro groaned, but let it be since he got a whack knew board. He clambered into his bed and let sleep overtake him softly.

The next day, Hiro awoke to a pleasant surprise. Aunt Cass had brought him breakfast in bed. He smiled at the chocolate chip pancakes that smiled back at him. Literally; Aunt Cass had cut out a smiley face in them.

Hiro couldn't help but feel a sting as he finished up his breakfast. Don't get him wrong, the boy was beyond grateful that he had Aunt Cass and Tadashi, but he always spent his birthday with them.

Last year for his 21st birthday, Tadashi's friends had taken him to a bar; given that Gogo practically forced him too (But still!). Hiro simply wished he wasn't so antisocial as to not have _any_ friends. Alas, life was cruel and he was bullied throughout his school years; though Tadashi put an end to it rather quickly (But that's a story for another day).

Graduating extremely early didn't help either. after he received his diploma, Hiro had nearly ceased human contact altogether were it not for his late night bot fighting which Tadashi had also put a stop to rather quickly (Again, a story for another day).

Hiro tried to push these thoughts away as he thanked Aunt Cass for a wonderful meal. His bubbly Aunt was pleased that he liked it and rushed back downstairs.

"So you ready for that surprise now?" Tadashi asked once she was gone. Hiro smirked in response. "What the hell do you think?" He asked comically. Tadashi wagged a finger in his brother's face. "Okay big shot, don't think that just because you turned sixteen that you can curse all Willy-nilly. Because trust me, I WILL resort to a swear jar if I have to." He warned. Hiro laughed at this. "Alight, got it. No cursing. What's my surprise?" Hiro asked.

"C'mon. Let's go out in the backyard." Tadashi said, heading downstairs. Confused but excited, Hiro followed. He walked outside to see a table with a huge cake on it. At least three layers.

"Baked it myself." Tadashi said proudly, popping out of nowhere. Hiro smirked and decided to mess with his brother. "Well, I guess you didn't specify if it was a good or bad surprise so I can't complain." He said. Tadashi crossed his arms. "Hey, Aunt Cass helped. This is one damn good Cake." He promised. Hiro rose an eyebrow. "Hey Tadashi, what about that swear jar from before?" He asked smartly. Tadashi gave Hiro a noogie and pushed him toward the cake, throwing the kid off balance.

Tadashi laughed as Hiro made contact with the grass. Standing up, he gave his brother an irritable look. "Real funny." Hiro said sarcastically.

"I thought it was." A feminine voice said. "Gogo?" Hiro questioned, surprised. "Not just me Hiro." She said with a smirk. Just as she said that, Wasabi, Fred, and Honey Lemon emerged and carried both presents and bright smiles. Hiro was speechless, especially for the fact that Honey Lemon had gotten his epic fall on video.

"Tadashi? You brought them here?" Hiro asked, slightly taken aback. It was uncharacteristic for the boy to show any form of shock so Tadashi commended himself for getting Hiro to widen his eyes a little bit.

"Yup, now blow out the candles on your fantastic cake." He demanded playfully. Hiro smiled and hopped up to the cake in glee.

Truth be told, he was happy that Tadashi had called his friends to celebrate with them, but it felt a little awkward. They weren't his age. It was as if they weren't _his_ friends to share with Tadashi. So Hiro took a big breath and made his wish. 'I wish I had friends my own age. One's that Tadashi didn't have to invite out of pity for Me.' he thought, blowing out all 16 candles in one go.

"What did you wish for Hiro?!" Honey Lemon asked excitedly. Hiro shook his head. "Can't tell you. Birthday rules." He said secretively, causing Honey Lemon to pout.

"Now your surprise." Tadashi said, opening the back door. Hiro cocked his head to the side. "I thought this was the surprise." He said, confused.

The now sixteen year old turned his head to face Tadashi, but couldn't have braced himself nearly enough for what he saw. For once, Tadashi had done the impossible. He genuinely SURPRISED Hiro. The boy's jaw dropped, eyes wide, hands fallen to his side in disbelief. He couldn't form a sentence, he was so shocked. He fell to the grass for the second time that day, only this time it was his own doing.

"NO FUCKING WAY. Chip?! Jaws?! Daisy?! S-Strawberry?!" he exclaimed. There stood his friends he had met about two and a half years ago. He never thought he'd ever see them again in his life, let alone on his birthday. They all smiled and waved at him excitedly. He couldn't move, frozen in fear.

"Swear jar Hiro." Tadashi scolded, going unnoticed by Hiro. The boy was far too enamored by the sight in front of him. His wish had come true so fast, he simply couldn't keep up.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRAVE!" They screamed in synchronization as if they had rehearsed it which they had. Hiro couldn't help the dopey smile creeping its way onto his face at his nickname. "You guys remembered me?" He breathed in joy. They looked at him as if he had grown three heads.

"How could we possibly forget someone like you Brave? Especially Strawberry here." Chip said with a tease in his voice, causing the girl to blush. "I can't believe this. How did you guys get here?" He asked in awe. Daisy stepped up to explain. "See, we were approached by some nerdy goofus in a cap that somewhat resembled you." She started as Tadashi let out a "Hey!" Hiro laughed at this.

"Anyway, so he came up to us at the Slice and none of us recognized him, though Strawberry here said he looked familiar. We were like 'how'? And she was all like 'Oh, he looks kind of like Brave. They have the same eyes and nose.' We all laughed at her obviously and the guy was surprised that Strawberry noticed the resemblance after asking us who 'Brave' was. He told us his name was Tadashi and he was your brother. He also said he'd been looking for us and that we should surprise you on your birthday." Daisy finished.

Hiro looked to his brother. "Y-you found them for _me_?" He asked, touched. Tadashi nodded. "I thought you might want to see them again. I remember the week after you ran away that day you'd talk nonstop about them. Going on about Strawberry's wild hair, Jaw's sharp vampire like teeth, and Chip's funny nickname, Daisy's straight forwardness. You seemed to miss them a lot. You tried to make a gummy bear icee. You even drew a picture of the Piece of Cake café. That kind of told me you'd wanted to see them again." Tadashi said with a humble shrug.

Hiro ran full speed and tackled Tadashi in a massive bear hug. "You're literally the best brother in existence no matter what any other younger siblings might say. I love you Nii-san" He whispered only to where Tadashi could hear him. His brother hugged back and chuckled. "Told ya I'd top the hover board didn't I?" He said smugly. Hiro smiled. "Yeah. You definitely topped it off bro." He said in glee. "Alright, as emotional and awesome this hug is, I didn't drag them all the way from Frost Point for them to see you hug your brother forever." Tadashi said, pushing Hiro toward his friends. Hiro gave a last grateful smile to Tadashi before turning to his friends.

"Group hug!" Daisy cried, surrounding them together like she did the very moment before Hiro left last time. Hiro felt the same warm happy feeling he felt last time he hugged the group.

"So, c'mon, I'm totally diggin that cake Brave." Jaws said with a grin. Hiro laughed. "Go ahead, I'm just gonna grab something from inside." Hiro said, walking in the house.

The boy raced to his room and found the gifts he had made especially for the four people he met in that café in case he ever met them again. He grabbed them and ran downstairs, almost crashing into Chip in the midst of it. "Wow Chip, missed me that much?" Hiro asked jokingly. Chip ignored Hiro's comment and gave him a goofy grin. "Spill it. Strawberry never gave the details, did you guys get it on or what?" He asked. Hiro was a bit taken aback. Unsure of how exactly to respond, he tried to stall.  
>"Hey, want to see what I made you guys?" He asked, holding up his gifts for them. Luckily, it worked and Chip was absorbed in his gift while Hiro dragged him outside where the rest were. Hiro went up to the other three and handed them their gifts as well.<p>

"An anklet and ear piece?" Daisy questioned, observing the anklet which had a sparkly yellow daisy in the center.

"Anklet for you, ring for Strawberry, watch for Chip, and chain for Jaws." Hiro listed off.

"Well these are epic and all, but what's with the ear pieces?" Jaws asked, putting the chain on. Daisy put her anklet on as well as Strawberry put her ring on. It was a bright red ruby ring, matching her hair and blush that sported her cheeks.

"They're communicators. So we can all talk to each other through them. I needed something they receive frequencies from, so I gave you all something to spark their power. The anklet, watch, chain, and ring." Hiro explained. They were all amazed. "You made these?" Strawberry asked in wonder. "Yup." Hiro replied.

"How did you know you'd see us again?" Strawberry questioned.

"I didn't. I just sort of hoped." Hiro said with a shrug.

While Hiro was conversing with his friends, Tadashi and his friends watched with huge smiles. "You really made him happy Tadashi." Honey Lemon praised. "Yeah, never seen the munchkin look so happy." Gogo added, causing Tadashi's heart to swell with pride. "You really think so?" He asked.

"Totally dude, guy doesn't look this happy even with gummy bears." Fred commented. "Gotta agree with Fred. Little man looks like his wish came true." Wasabi said. Tadashi was pleased with these comments and he watched Hiro as the boy was excitedly explaining what his gifts did.

Hiro was having the time of his life. He was laughing so hard and having so much fun, he didn't realize that time was running out and the sun was set before he knew what was happening.

"Well, we're gonna strap up our skates. Meet us in the front." Chip said, dragging Daisy and Jaws along with him. Strawberry and Hiro were left alone. Hiro suddenly experienced a blast of Déjà vu. This was exactly what happened last time.

Strawberry shifted her feet uncomfortably, biting her lip. "So uh, did you get a girlfriend in all this time?" She asked uneasily. Hiro rose an eyebrow. "What? You're kidding right? Me?" Hiro asked with a laugh. The redhead looked hopeful. "So that's a no?" She asked.

"Yeah it's a no. what about you? Did your hot red hair catch the attention of any guy?" He asked coolly, though internally, he was slightly anxious to know the answer. Strawberry slowly shook her head. "One guy asked me out, but there's only one guy that really caught my attention." She admitted shyly.

"Yeah me too." Hiro said with a smirk. Strawberry suddenly looked worried. "Who?" she asked sadly. Hiro tapped his chin. He leaned into Strawberry's ear slowly and whispered out "you." Softly.

Strawberry shuddered at the warm breath tickling her ear and she smiled at Hiro. She came closer toward Hiro to give him a sweet kiss on the cheek, but Hiro turned his head to the side, catching her full on the lips by surprise. The red head gasped in Hiro's mouth, but she slowly eased into it, smiling in bliss.

Then, she pulled away sadly too fast in Hiro's opinion. When she started toward the door, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "You're not slipping away so fast this time." He said smoothly, capturing her lips once more. This time when Strawberry gasped in surprise, Hiro stuck his tongue in Strawberry's mouth, shocking the red head. She let out a noise which egged Hiro on. He deepened the kiss and hugged Strawberry close. When they both pulled apart this time, they clinked their heads together, both sporting smiles. Strawberry's was love-struck while Hiro's was pleased. He licked his lips and smirked at Strawberry.

"Now _that_ was a kiss." He said cockily. Strawberry blushed a fresh cherry red and she smacked Hiro in the side. "You're too cocky." She said with her tongue sticking out. "Better put that tongue back in your mouth before I do it for you." He said suggestively, causing Strawberry to stick her tongue back in her mouth speedily, another blush creeping its way to her cheeks. Hiro laughed in response  
>"Ugh, why do I even bother with you? This relationship is so ugh!" she cried, throwing her arms in the air. Hiro smirked again. "Relationship? When did this happen? Not that I'm complaining." Hiro said. "Yes relationship. You're stuck with me now like it or not." Strawberry claimed with crossed arms.<br>"I like it. A lot." Hiro assured, grabbing Strawberry's hand. The red head smiled. "I like _you_ Brave." She said sweetly. Hiro smiled at her. Before he could respond, they both heard a ringing in their ears followed by laughter. Confused, both teens looked at each other.

"Ha! Thanks for the gifts Brave. I love how we can hear EVERYTHING!" Chip yelled, causing Strawberry to turn into a strawberry. Hiro face palmed himself while trying not to laugh. "Brave, this is so embarrassing, how can you laugh?!" Strawberry demanded.

"Oh c'mon Lasiandra, don't tell me that you don't find this the slightest bit hilarious?" Hiro asked. Strawberry's eyes widened at Hiro's words. "Hiro? You remembered my real name?" she asked, happily surprised.  
>"Well yeah, you remembered mine." Hiro reasoned.<br>"Well can you blame me? You're not exactly the most romantic guy." Strawberry defended. "Romantic huh? I can be romantic. Dear Lasiandra, how my heart beats a million miles a minute when I see your fiery hot red hair. How my pulse quickens when you blush. How my smile widens when we kiss. How my-"Okay! I get it! Thanks Brave." Strawberry cut in with giggles. Hiro smiled back.

"Gross, get a room already." Daisy said through their ear pieces. Hiro sheepishly smiled. "Maybe we should turn these off." Hiro suggested, shutting his off. "How do I do it?" Strawberry asked, fumbling with her ear piece. Hiro chuckled and reached over to shut it off. His touch made Strawberry lightly blush and she gazed up at Hiro with her electric blue eyes. Hiro noticed this and quickly pecked her on the cheek. He didn't want to have a full-blown make out session with her so late at night where his hormonal urges wouldn't want to control themselves.

"C'mon, let's meet up with the others." He suggested, grabbing the red head's hand and leading her to the front.

When they all strapped their skates on, Hiro was surprised once again to feel a sting in his heart. His friends. The only friends he ever had in his life (Not counting Tadashi's, they weren't really _his_), were leaving again. Would it be years till he saw them again?

They all looked troubled to go as well. Hiro smiled sadly and hugged them all one by one, lingering a little longer at Strawberry's hug.

"W-will we see you again?" Strawberry asked as she did last time. This time, Hiro knew his answer. "I promise we will. I'll come to Frost Point sometime. Probably more often. I love you guys." Hiro admitted.

"Not too shabby yourself Brave." Jaws said, patting Hiro's shoulder. "Yeah, these gifts are beyond awesome." Chip commended. "Yeah, thanks again for them by the way." Daisy added. Strawberry smiled softly at Hiro, showing her the ring he gave her. She had placed it on her middle finger just to get a kick out of Hiro's reaction and was pleased to see he had laughed.

"Well, see you soon then Brave?" Daisy asked. "For sure." Hiro promised.

They were about to leave when Daisy cried out "Group hug!"

They all assembled into a massive hug to Hiro's delight. He hugged them all as tightly as he could, causing them to groan. He chuckled and pulled away, a bright smile etched across his face.

They all took off, Strawberry remaining to say one last thing. "You're really lucky to have a brother like Tadashi. I could tell he had been looking for us for a while by the way he was out of breath when he finally did find us. Almost as if he'd been searching for years." Strawberry revealed, shocking Hiro. "Thanks. I'll be sure to mention how grateful I am. Bye Lasiandra." He said, giving her one last hug. Strawberry smiled as well. "Bye Hiro." He said, skating off with her friends.

Later that night, Hiro thanked Tadashi profusely for the absolute best birthday of his life. His brother had admitted he searched practically all of Frost Point, starting from the end of it. Every weekend he'd go to the area searching for the people Hiro described, but couldn't find them. Eventually he stumbled upon the café one Friday when he was finished with school and found the bright red hair that Hiro had described. From there, it was a piece of cake.

When Tadashi finished explaining, Hiro hugged him once more. "Thanks again Tadashi. This is literally the best birthday ever. No gift could've topped it." Hiro admitted honestly. "No problem bonehead. And don't think you're completely off the hook. I saw how you kissed that red head all heatedly." Tadashi said with a smirk, though he was secretly slightly jealous that Hiro had gotten more action than he ever had at age sixteen.

For once in his life, Hiro felt his cheeks turn a brighter red than Strawberry's hair. "Tadashi!" He yelled as the older boy laughed.

So a few people requested this. Watcha think? Should I continue or leave it here as a one-shot. Just lemme know whatcha think.

-Girl you wouldn't expect


	2. Chapter 2

Friends

2

Getting to know you

Normal POV

"You're sure he's coming today Strawberry? I mean it's been two whole Friday's and he hasn't showed up." Daisy pointed out as the red head ordered a gummy bear icee for Hiro who was nowhere to be found yet.  
>"He'll be here Daisy, he promised me through the ear piece." Strawberry assured, pointing to her ear and ring. "Alright, but if he's not here in ten minutes, I'm leaving. I've got a major project due in Chem and I'm not about to flunk it." Daisy warned. "He'll be here guys. He promised." Strawberry said.<p>

Just as she said those words, Hiro walked through the door, hands in pockets, smug smile playing on his lips. "Brave!" they all called, waving him over to their table. Hiro caught their eyes and walked over to them.

"Hey guys. Long time no see." He said. When he sat down, Strawberry punched him in the arm and not lightly. "Ow! What was that for?!" He asked, rubbing him arm. "For waiting two weeks before seeing us again." She replied hotly. Her anger boiled long enough to peck him lightly on the cheek. "And what was that for?" Hiro asked, his smirk returning. "I don't know, but don't make me regret it." She said with a wag of her finger. Hiro chuckled. "I won't." he said, taking a seat.

"So why'd you wait two Friday's before coming to see us?" Chip asked.

"Well, the first one I couldn't come because Tadashi gave me yet another tour of his nerd school, and the second one I couldn't come because I ran a fever. Sorry." He responded. "It's cool. We were just starting to think you'd never come. Glad you did though." Chip said.

"So let's get to know you better. We hardly know anything about you to be honest." Jaws admitted.

"Yeah for sure. I don't know much about you guys either. I'll go first then. How come all of you have nicknames except Daisy?" Hiro asked.

"That's because they thought Daisy suited me well enough already." Daisy answered. Hiro cocked his head to the side. "How so? Cause they're yellow and you're a blonde or…?" Hiro trailed off.

"Yeah I guess. I mean, Strawberry is the one who really decides these things. She likes giving things funny names. Like, instead of paper, she'll say processed tree. Instead of pencil, she'll say processed tree writing stick. It's pretty funny how she nicknamed Jaws to be honest." Daisy explained with a smile. Hiro glanced at the redhead who gave a sheepish smile and wave.

"Hope you don't mind dating a dork." She said shyly. Hiro laughed and shook his head. "I'm not complaining." He said as Fizz brought their orders again. Hiro was a bit surprised when she handed him a gummy bear icee. "You guys ordered for me?" He asked.

"Well I did. Sorry, I didn't know if you ate or anything!" she said apologetically. "Relax Strawberry. I was just a bit caught off guard is all. Thanks." He said, taking a greedy sip of it. Little did his friends know that he hadn't eaten all day due to modifying his bot.

"No problem." She replied, happy that Hiro was enjoying it.

"So how did you all meet?" Hiro asked, chewing on a red gummy bear.

"Well, Daisy and Jaws are fraternal twins." Chip started, while Hiro was caught off guard again. "You guys are siblings?! I swear, I never used to get this surprised easily until I met you guys." he said in amazement. They all laughed at Hiro.

"Yeah, people are usually surprised at first because we never really bring it up." Jaws explained.

"Makes sense. So how did the rest of you guys meet each other?" Hiro questioned.

"Well, one day, Jaws got detention and so he had to stay after." Daisy started. "I wasn't going to wait around outside for half an hour, so I headed to the library. There, I saw a nerd with her nose stuck up in a book, or so I thought. I saw the book she was reading and it was a textbook. I tapped on her shoulder to reveal none other than our very own Strawberry. Only you couldn't tell it was Strawberry back then. Her hair was dark brown and curly. Not candy red and wavy." Daisy revealed. This was news to Hiro.

"Okay wait, you're a nerd that reads textbooks?" Hiro asked with a laugh. Strawberry blushed. "That was like in fifth grade! Continue the story Daisy!" Strawberry begged.

"Alright, calm down. Anyways, she looked at me all confused like and I was all like 'Hey, my name's Daisy.' She was like 'Hi, I'm Lasiandra. What exactly did you want?' I huffed and told her that was rude and she blushed and said that's not what she meant. We talked for a while and I ended up asking her why the heck she was reading a textbook. She said she was failing math and needed to study which was why she was in the library. We just sort of became friends from there. Then we hung out and I introduced her to Jaws and yeah." Daisy finished.

"I didn't expect you to read textbooks in your free time, even if you were failing." Hiro said teasingly. Strawberry glared at him. "Hey, at least I put the effort to raise my grade up." Strawberry defended, suddenly looking rather down. Hiro felt a bit guilty. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you feel bad, I was only joking around." Hiro apologized.  
>"It's not your fault. I'm just being over sensitive." Strawberry said, looking up. Chip, Daisy, and Jaws shared knowing looks.<p>

"Hey Strawberry, if he's gonna keep hanging out with us, maybe we should tell him?" Chip suggested. Hiro was confused. "Tell me what?" he asked. The three ignored him, looking at Strawberry for approval.  
>"A-alright fine. Just hurry up and tell him quickly." Strawberry blurted out, hiding her face in her hands.<p>

"Guys, what is it?" Hiro asked, curiosity coming out.

"Strawberry failed a grade. She's supposed to be in our grade, but…" Jaws trailed off. Hiro was taken aback.

Hiro's POV

So obviously, this came as a shock to me. Strawberry didn't seem like the type to not take school seriously. I didn't know what to say. I never imagined going out with someone that was held back. I didn't have anything against it. It just came as a shock is all. My lack of response must've worried Strawberry because she had tears in her eyes and she ran out of the café.

"Wait!" I cried out, but she didn't stop running. "Well, I'm going after her. Don't wait up." I said to the others, chasing after Strawberry.

She was really fast. Way faster than me, but I did my best to keep up. "Strawberry please wait!" I cried out, hoping she'd stop. No such luck. She only seemed to run faster after that. I was losing breath and was about to give up when she finally stopped running. I caught up to her and panted for air.  
>"S-Strawberry." I breathe out, trying to catch my breath. She was panting too. "G-go away Brave." She says to me. I shake my head and sit down, dragging her down with me.<p>

"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I don't care if you failed a grade. Honestly. So you're a little slower in math than some other people. Who cares?" I say. She frowns. "A lot of people do Brave. You don't even know what it's like to be constantly bullied by people because you're different. You don't know what it's like for people to tease you and pick on you because you're not like them." Strawberry whispered behind tears.

I gave a bitter smile. That's where she's wrong. I _do_ know.

"That's what you think Strawberry. I know that feeling a lot more than you'd think. I was bullied in school too. All the time. In fact, check this out." I say to her, showing her the small, but prominent scar on my upper left arm. Strawberry was wide eyed.

"What happened?!" she asked in horror. "That's not important. Look, just know that I understand what it's like to be bullied. You're not alone. Also, I'm not judging you." I assure her.

"But why would you want to be with someone stupid like me?" she asks sadly. "C'mon Strawberry, you're NOT stupid. And you're not my girlfriend because of how smart or not you are. You're my girlfriend because I like you." I clarify. She blushes at my words. "G-girlfriend?" she stutters. I nod. "That's okay with you right? Cause if it isn't, this is awkward." I say with a laugh. She nudges my shoulder. "Of course it's okay with me. I just didn't know if it was with _you_." She admits with a shrug.

"Well, you wanna go back before they think we died?" I ask.

"Wait a second." She said. I sat back down. "What is it?" I ask.

"I thought you said you didn't go to school. How did you get bullied?" She asked. I gulped. This was a messy topic. I had to say the right thing.

"Well I used to go to school." I say lightly, hoping she'd leave it there. She didn't.

"Did you get bullied too badly?" She asked with concern.  
>"Nope. I just…well, let's go back to the café." I say with an uneasy laugh. She pulls me back down before I can walk. "Brave. Talk." She demands. I sigh. I really didn't want to tell her why I didn't go to school. She already feels bad about herself.<p>

"Tell me Brave. I can take it." She promises.

I take a deep breath. "I already graduated." I blurt out. She doesn't say anything. She's just frozen on the ground, blinking every few seconds. Then she slowly looks up at me and smiles sadly.  
>"So you must think I'm beyond pathetic then huh?" she says finally. "Hey, that's not true. I don't think you're pathetic at all." I assure her.<p>

"How do I know you're not just saying that to make me feel better?" she questions.

"Because trust me, I'm terrible at comforting people. That's the truth." I tell her.

"Can I ask you a question?" she asks shyly.

"You just did." I say with a smirk. She gives me a playful glare.

"Alright wise guy. Can I ask you two questions?" she asks.

"Literally just did again." I reply with a snort. She looks irritated.

"Alright fine, four questions?" she asks sarcastically.

"Just did." I respond yet again. I wait for her to take the bait and she does.

"What?! When did I ask the fourth one?!" she exclaims, confused.

"Just now." I say, bursting into laughter. Her face says 'I'm 900% done with your shit and it makes me laugh harder. She smacks me on the side and rolls her eyes.

"Okay, what's your question?" I ask. She looks nervous.

"Well, it's just…oh I'm just gonna flat out ask. Why didn't you visit? You knew we went to the slice every Friday. We told you that. We were starting to think you forgot about us until your brother came looking for us. So why? Why wait two whole years to see us again?" she asked me, not meeting my gaze.

I sigh. This was a question I was hoping to avoid. "It's a pretty lame answer." I warn her. "I still want to hear it." She says. I nod. "I figured that much. Well, truth is, a few minutes after we departed from the Slice back then, my brother found me and gave a good scolding. He grounded me for two months and that meant I couldn't go anywhere. I just sort of stayed cooped up in my room and that got me drawing. I drew designs for the ear pieces I made you guys. I drew a picture of the Slice. I even drew you something actually, which reminds me." I say, fumbling with my hoodie pocket.

I find it. My crumped piece of folded paper. I hand it to her with a smile. She curiously eyes it and then opens it. She looks at it for a few seconds before laughing. "Th-that's me?!" she exclaims with a snort. I nod and smile back.

It's a picture of her, but I replaced her face with a strawberry. I thought she might get offended at first, but I'm glad she liked it. Her giggling told me she found it funny, which is what I had hoped for.

"Well, this is cute and all, but you've got a story to finish explaining." She says to me.

"Yeah. So anyways, I wanted to come for a long time but I was grounded. Eventually, I was un-grounded and I wanted to look for you, but things kept coming up and Tadashi forbid me from going to Frost Point because it was too far to go alone. I asked him to come with me, but he didn't let me and I never understood why. I later found out that Tadashi told Aunt Cass about me running away from home and so she set a curfew for me. It was literally impossible for me to see you guys again. That's why he was so dead set against not letting me come. Then I guess Tadashi felt bad for me and came looking for you guys and found you. He must've seen how much I liked you all." I finish with a grin.

To my relief, Strawberry seems satisfied with my explanation.

"Thank god I can tell Daisy she was wrong. We were all talking about how you never came to visit us and Daisy said that maybe you just didn't want to hang out with us anymore. I said she was probably wrong and I'm really glad that I have legit proof now." she says.

"Oh god no. You and the others are literally the best thing that's ever happened to me." I say honestly. Strawberry bites her lip and shifts her gaze uneasily.

"I did have one more question." She says nervously.  
>"Go for it." I reply.<p>

"How are you able to come now? I thought you said you had a curfew." She says, trying her best not to sound accusing, but I can tell she's a bit hurt.

"Relax Strawberry. I swear I really like you guys. After my party, Aunt Cass saw how much fun I was having and said she never saw me that happy before so she lifted the curfew. Now I can come here almost every Friday unless something comes up. That, and I can contact you through the earpiece." I say happily. Strawberry gives me a hug and squeals in glee. "Oh thank god! I'm sorry I ever doubted you in any way. I knew you were our friend." She says. I hug her back.

"Yeah. I'm not a liar like I said. So now that that's cleared up, you feel better?" I ask.

"Definitely. Well, now we should go back to the Slice." She says, getting up.

"I second that." I say, following her.

When we get back, I notice that Daisy's gone.

"Where'd Daisy go?" I ask. Chip looks up at me and Strawberry.

"Oh, you guys are back. Yeah, Daisy had to go home to work on some project for school. You know how that goes. Oh wait, no you don't." he says with a snort. I roll my eyes at his comment, but smile too.

"Whatever. So I sorted things out with Strawberry." I inform him and Jaws.

"Well that's good. Now that you've got to ask a few questions, I think it's our turn. So why aren't you in school? Flunked out? Dropped out?" Jaws asks. Strawberry gives him a look. "Try already graduated." She answered for me.

Chip nearly choked on his triple chocolate shake.

"No fuckin way. Won't believe it till I see a diploma bro." Jaws declared. I shrugged and pulled out a piece of paper from my backpack, handing it to him. He unsurely opens it and has a rather confused look on his face.

"Uh, why did you hand me a picture of you and your brother drawn on it?" he finally asks. I widen my eyes and snatch it back. Shit, it's the picture I drew of Tadashi for his birthday. I had drawn him sleeping at his desk and me watching over him with a smile.

I blush in embarrassment and yank out another crumpled piece of paper from my backpack. I unfold it, make sure it's my diploma and practically shove it into Jaw's hands while stuffing the picture back in.

Jaws and Chip snicker at me while Strawberry tries her best not to laugh. I groan.

"Brother Complex much?" Jaws asks with a laugh. I huff in annoyance. "It's NOT brother Complex. Never accuse me of that. I just care about my brother a lot, okay?!" I set straight. They snicker some more and I hear Strawberry crack a giggle too. It's clear they don't believe me.

I see them all three observe the paper and then turn slack jawed.

"WOW. You really did graduate. So you're like a super genius or something?" Chip asks me.

"I mean I wouldn't say super genius." I start.

"But you can. Because it's true." I finish cockily. They all three roll their eyes.

"Whatever. Bet you still can't skate like a pro." Jaws brags.  
>"Well maybe not, but I can ride a hover board." I say nonchalantly.<p>

They widen their eyes again. "Did you make one?!" Chip asks excitedly.  
>"Well my brother did. Wanna check it out?" I ask.<br>"Wait, you rode it here?" strawberry asks. I nod and lead them outside to show them.

"Bro that's epic. Your brother knows how to pick gifts." Jaws says, observing the hover board.

Suddenly, I heard a beeping noise coming from Chip. He looks at his watch, setting off the alarm. "Sorry guys. I have to go, mom wanted me home to help out and stuff. See ya Brave." He says, running off.

"Shoot, I have to go too. I've gotta take my little sis to her dance class. Bye Brave. See ya later. You better come again soon!" Strawberry called, leaving as well after giving me a quick hug.

"You have to leave too?" I ask Jaws.

"I kind of wanted to ask you something first." He says slowly.

"What's up?" I ask.  
>"Well, it's just…why are you friendly with us? Not that I mind, but you barely knew us, yet you seemed so at ease with us." He says.<p>

"Well, that's why I wanted to see you guys again. I wanted to get to know you all better. The whole Strawberry drama kind of canceled that out though." I explain.

"Well that makes sense and all, but it didn't answer my question. Why were you so open to us? So willing to talk to us?" He asks.

"Well, that's a long story so I'm just going to give the short version. I was an eleven year old in high school. Kids weren't particularly nice, I'm not particularly good at keeping my mouth shut. I got bullied, didn't have many friends. Once I met you guys, I guess I thought 'Hey, I finally have friends.' Pathetic right? I didn't even know you, yet I just wanted to get to know you guys." I say with a semi-bitter scoff.

"Wow Brave, that's not what I meant. We love having you around. We were the ones that asked you to sit with us in the first place. I was just curious. You're different than most people. You didn't seem to judge us like a lot of other people do. When you found out Strawberry failed a grade and continued to stay with us, you earned my trust immediately." He tells me.

"Thanks Jaws." I say. I glance at my watch. "Shoot. Man time really flies when you're having fun. I should go before Aunt Cass changes her mind about taking away my curfew." I say.

"Curfew?" Jaws asks.

"Yeah, ask Strawberry about it if you really want to know, but I've gotta go. See ya." I say, hopping onto my hover board. "Same. Bye Brave." He says, strapping on his roller blades and skating away.

I ride away too. While I may not have learned as much about my new friends as I wanted to, I learned a lot. I can't believe that Strawberry failed a grade. It rose a few questions in my mind, but I decided not to ask them until I got to know her better. For now, I'll just be happy that I've got them by my side.

Well, you guys wanted another chapter so here you go. Hope you liked it. I'll probably make the next one where Hiro visits their school or something along the lines of that.

-Girl you wouldn't expect


End file.
